Zap medics resond to man down.

[bigbaldguy]

Howdy all. I like how something I posted for one reason has morphed into a discussion about an entirely different topic. I would really like to know how more of you feel about these photos and if they "cross the line". To that end I've added a poll in the thread. The poll is anonymous so please be honest. If you all decide that pics are in poor taste I'll happily take them down.

 

[Sasha]

I stand by my opinion that standing around taking pictures of someone during their emergency is poor form.

If I were the patient, I would be ticked off.

It's a sick/injured person, not a circus side show, no reason for you to stand and stare. It is no better than rubbernecking at an accident hoping to see some blood and guts. We roll our eyes at those people but encourage this?

 

[DrankTheKoolaid]

Howdy all. I like how something I posted for one reason has morphed into a discussion about an entirely different topic. I would really like to know how more of you feel about these photos and if they "cross the line". To that end I've added a poll in the thread. The poll is anonymous so please be honest. If you all decide that pics are in poor taste I'll happily take them down.

No faces no issues, Period.

 

[firecoins]

More pics were taken that I chose not to use because you could see the patient more clearly. This happened in a public area with traffic stopped and a crowd standing nearby for a dog adoption event. I in no way feel the pictures I posted are in any way inappropriate as they simply show a great crew doing an excellent job of helping someone in need. Very few events like this are not captured by the public with cameras these days. Sooner or later we will all work a call in front of the camera and for my part I hope the film shows me doing exactly what I'm supposed to do just like these guys.

Oh and just FYI they aren't "working the patient" as in CPR the patient was conscious the whole time. Sorry that may have been a bad choice of words on my part.

why did the ZAP crew nt transport the patient?

I have no problem with the pics. Crew should have loaded the patient into the ambulance and worked them up privately.

 

[medicdan]

why did the ZAP crew nt transport the patient?

I have no problem with the pics. Crew should have loaded the patient into the ambulance and worked them up privately.

In some areas, private services need to activate (or notify) the regional 911 provider. The arriving ambulance can stop and render aid at the First Responder level, but it's up to the contracted provider who transports.

Frankly, my guess is that the private service's dispatch would prefer the crew not commit to the call if they were en-route to a (non-emergency) call themselves.

Each region should have protocols for ambulances being flagged down and what changes if the truck is loaded, etc.

 

[Medic Tim]

I see no issue. You can not see the pt. He was not in the way of crews or creating a danger to himself or others. The second you step out in public you are fair game. Love it or hate it, that is the way it is and will probably always be.

Where I work there are a few freelance reporters that have scanners and race us to calls. It is common to see their work in the newspaper, on the evening news or on youtube. It is very annoying but legal.

I do have issue with responders taking pics and video to post online. There is a time and place for this if it for learning opportunities. I will take a few pics of a car wreck if I have time to show the doc when we get to the er. Can be much easier to explain it if he/she can see what I am talking about.

 

[bigbaldguy]

Traffic was actually stopped by a police officer (he's in one of the pics) for most of these photos. People in the left lane were pushing past despite the officers best efforts. I did snap one as I was rolling by once FD rolled in and officer waves us through. I think ZAP had just rolled up on scene or possibly been flagged down by bystander. I doubt they had been there more than a few minutes. In all i was stopped waiting for officer to wave me through for maybe 5 minutes. This all occurred less than a mile from Houston med center so there are always lots of IFT guys around. I went and grabbed a smoothie just down the road then came back up the same street expecting everyone to have moved on and ZAP was assisting HFD in loading patient so total scene time for HFD was at least 15 minutes. No one seemed to be in a huge hurry so I don't think patient was critical. I have no idea what rules are for IFT's are in texas but i imagine if the patient had been in a bad way they might have loaded him and taken him to Herman which is just 3 or 4 minutes away. For all I know he may have just rolled off curb in his chair and tipped over but I suspect there was a little more to it then that.

I would be interested to know more about ZAP ambulance as there's nothing available online about them. There are some IFT folks out there that would have called 911 and continued to post. In fact a quick google search turns up situations where even off duty or out of area 911 folks have not stopped to render aid in situations like this. I feel these guys did the right thing in this situation and should be commended.

 

[bigbaldguy]

I stand by my opinion that standing around taking pictures of someone during their emergency is poor form.

If I were the patient, I would be ticked off.

It's a sick/injured person, not a circus side show, no reason for you to stand and stare. It is no better than rubbernecking at an accident hoping to see some blood and guts. We roll our eyes at those people but encourage this?

Sasha i assure I respect your opinions. Of all the people on EMTLIFE I trust you to tell me what you think rather than what I want to hear. I was taking photos of a crew doing a good job and my only thoughts at the time were A. These guys need to be recognized for doing good and B. Seeing an IFT crew and a FD crew working together like that here in Houston is very rare and should also be recognized.

I think that many times IFT guys and 911 folks tend to consider themselves different from one another. While it's true that the mechanics of our jobs are different the core principals of our jobs are not. Our egos, labels, the color of our trucks the type of shirts we wear are all irrelevant. We are all here to care for and protect our patients to the best of our abilities.

 

[Aidey]

I think in this case the pictures are very obviously of the crews, not the pt. They were also posted in an educational/informative manner, not an exploitive one.

 

[tssemt2010]

seeing as how the HFD ambulance had 2 basics on it and assuming the zap truck had a paramedic on it (most of them do) they did the right thing by giving a higher level of care, but given that circumstance id be interested to know how they turned over care to a lower level of care had they done any ALS interventions

 

[unite69er]

I stand by my opinion that standing around taking pictures of someone during their emergency is poor form.

If I were the patient, I would be ticked off.

It's a sick/injured person, not a circus side show, no reason for you to stand and stare. It is no better than rubbernecking at an accident hoping to see some blood and guts. We roll our eyes at those people but encourage this?

Yes, It was informative and not tasteless whatsoever. Praising EMS workers for doing a great job with picture angles that are meant only to give you a positive image of what a great job they are doing. There are no patient angles, ems responder angles, nothing with blood or guts at all. Simply well taken photos with positive praising captions. Good Job BBG!!!

Your opinion is definitely respected but not agreed with, by me whatsoever.

 

[Aidey]

Bloody hell, I voted in the poll and mucked it up. For some reason I read the options backwards. So I read "Yes, they are fine" and "No, they are inappropriate". Everyone deduct one vote from the "Yes, they are inappropriate" side.

 

[Remeber343]

Thank you for sharing! ZAP crew did it right. Nicely done.

 

[firetender]

Capturing a moment

When you're out in the public domain, the reality is now, more than ever before, there are scads of people trying to capture your tragic moments. It used to be just the pros, the reporters and camerapeople assign to get the scoops, but now, EVERYBODY has a camera like never before.

When Sasha sees me come across an accident, park my car, grab my camera, (after assessing if it's more important I help) and start shooting away, will she block me? Does it matter that I'm not even aware of what I'm shooting or why because I'm too busy with Frame, SHOOT! Frame SHOOT! with the intent to capture a great human moment that will be meaningful for many?

Let's face it, stuff like this is popular, it sells newspapers and invites viewing on the internet. And I think a reason is because the average folk don't participate in life and death anymore. That's what we specialize in. So we're the novelty, human suffering to a certain extent is the novelty.

I have no quarrel with anyone else's opinion. I suppose what I'm talking about is more in the realm of art

 

[Martyn]

The pics are fine by me, but what the heck are those two guys wearing? Surely thats NOT their uniform? If I had to wear that it would be time to move on!!!

 

[Martyn]

This is what I thought they were wearing by the way

 

[bigbaldguy]

This is what I thought they were wearing by the way

I'm assuming you are referring only to the color?

 

[mycrofft]

The use of security camera "footage" without blurring faces in TV news is becoming more prevalent. They showed one last night of a guy being discovered down by a family member and the whole check-call-care and chain of survival thing taking place. Worked, too.

Someone once told me the legal waterrshed on reporting/photos was twowfold: was it slanderous/libelous, and was the activity done in a manner or place where the principals would have reasonably expected privacy?

Now the criteria seem to be "Are they rich enough to sue?" and " How much will Rupert Murdoch/Fox News pay for this?".

 

[Veneficus]

The pics are fine by me, but what the heck are those two guys wearing? Surely thats NOT their uniform? If I had to wear that it would be time to move on!!!

I think the name of the company was enough to want to move on.

This must be the highest paying outfit in the region or most likely to be voted "starter job."

this outfit and company name is probably about the only way they could get worse:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shazam!_(TV_series)

 

[DrankTheKoolaid]

re

I so remember watching Shazam as a Kid. The cool RV with the funky disco globe near the dash!